Reading, listening to, and questioning America... from the southern Great Plains

Cock fighting

Santorum received a more enthusiastic response from the audience, underscoring Romney’s continued difficulty in winning over the most conservative voters. But by hammering Romney with such sharp rhetoric — on taxes, climate change, fiscal policy and health care — he seemed to convey concern about Romney’s momentum.

“I didn’t blow in the wind when things were popular with the elite,” Santorum said, “because I don’t come from the elite.”

Asked after the speech why he had been so tough on Romney, Santorum said, “Match fire with fire.” ...WaPo

Ever been to a cock fight? The animals are bred to be vicious and, to make the fight more "fun," tiny, sharp spurs are strapped to their feet -- by owners and for the spectators -- before they're tossed into the ring. A series of gamecocks are worn out, bloodied and killed before it's time for the rest of us to go home.

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There are some differences between the candidates. One works with bribery, the other with meanness cloaked by puritanical self-righteousness.

When Mitt Romney arrived for a rally in this Detroit suburb, he needed a crew of roadies to unpack him. His campaign brought its own flags and its own chairs and its own stage and its own DJ, using a special “Romney-Michigan” playlist with Kid Rock and Kiss.

The Romney people even brought their own doughnuts: 35 dozen of a Detroit favorite called paczki (“punch-kee”), in flavors including strawberry, rose-hip and prune.

Rick Santorum does not provide doughnuts.

He does not provide music, either. Or flags. Or chairs. At a Santorum rally in Holland, Mich. — a day earlier on the opposite side of this desperately contested state — the candidate brought a sweater vest. Three of his children: “Numbers two, three and four,” he said. And a banner that wouldn’t stay on the wall. ...WaPo

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Google chooses Romney, kind of.

By hiring former Rep. Susan Molinari (R-N.Y.), a supporter of Mitt Romney, to head its lobbying team, Google is hedging its bets on the outcome of the 2012 presidential election.

The Internet giant already has close connections with the Obama administration. Company Chairman Eric Schmidt advised Obama during his 2008 campaign and is a frequent guest at the White House. Google employees are the third biggest contributors to Obama's re-election campaign, according to campaign finance data compiled by the Center for Responsive Politics.

But with so much at stake in legislation and policy, Google wants to be on good terms with the administration—no matter which party is in power.

The company is coming under increasing scrutiny from government officials over privacy issues. ...The Hill

But Arizona (is that bigger or smaller than the 51st state of Google?) opts for Santorum in the very latest poll.

Rick Santorum has wiped out Mitt Romney’s lead in Arizona, according to the latest survey from the American Research Group.

Romney took 39 percent in the ARG poll, followed by Santorum at 35 percent, Newt Gingrich at 15 percent and Ron Paul at 11 percent. ...

But...

Santorum had been fading in most post-debate polls, and Romney’s strongest hold has been on Arizona.

The Real Clear Politics average of polls shows Romney in the lead in Arizona by more than nine percent, with the only other post-debate survey taken by Rasmussen, which shows Romney up by 13. ...The Hill